The Ocean and the Sand
by straight0narrow
Summary: After defeating Amon, Korra is broken into pieces and is struggling to put her puzzle back together again. Hi Bolin! Nice of you to stop by. So I hear you like puzzles...


"_Well folks, the war is over_!" crackles the radio after months of disuse. "_Amon has disappeared and is rumored to be dead. The Equalists are now a peaceful political faction with a seat on the Republic Council and all is tranquil between the citizens of Republic city. Thanks must go to Avatar Korra…_" and the old radio is quickly turned off.

Korra withdraws her hand from the radio, leans back in her chair and rubs Naga between the ears with the other hand. It is a solitary moment on Air Temple Island as she watches the sun rise in the sky, breaking over the waves of the ocean and tingeing the clouds pink. Korra's sorrowful gaze drifts from the skyline to the jug of water sitting fifteen feet away. Her eyebrows twitch in concentration; she is staring so hard that Naga gets up and licks Korra's face to get her attention.

Korra laughs lightly and wipes the slobber off. "I am sorry Naga, I forgot that it is breakfast time. Come on lets go fishing today." Naga starts drooling at the word fish and Korra laughs a little again. "What would I do without you Naga."

Korra stands from the chair and briefly rubs her bandaged, injured right leg, then slowly begins the trek to the beach. One limping step after one limping step down the dirt path she goes until Korra can take the pain no longer and rides Naga for the rest of the way. Healing is a slow process.

And that is where Bolin finds her, laying on the sandy beach watching Naga fish and splash around. He watches her as she runs her fingers through the sand, sifting it from hand to hand.

It is weird to see her donning a white tang top and lose black pants rather then her usual water bender garb. It is odder still to see her with close cropped hair rather then her long locks. War changes everyone, but to him, it seems to have changed the Avatar the most.

"You know everyone in Republic city is looking for you? There are even rumors that you died along with Amon." He finally speaks from across a sand dune.

Korra startles and then rubs the back of her head and fake smiles at him, "Funny that they wouldn't look here, the place I live."

"Yeah," Bolin grins, "well Tenzin is keeping a pretty tight hold on this place, not allowing anyone outside in."

"Except you."

"and Mako." states Bolin.

"Please leave Bolin." Her words lay silence between them. He looks at Korra's bandaged leg and instead crosses the sand, plopping down at her side.

"How is the leg?" he says.

"Still as burned as ever."

Bolin timidly touches her hair, "You cut it short."

"Yea, that is what happens when you play with fire. Luckily I didn't lose an eye."

Bolin chuckles, "Then you might look like the famous Lord Zuko."

"Bolin, I am only going to ask politely one more time. Please leave."

Naga barks at a particularly elusive fish and dives into another wave.

"No. You cannot brush me off that easily. We are not seventeen anymore."

Korra snorts, "I haven't been seventeen for a long time. Leave or I will kick your ass off the island."

Bolin laughs again, "I can see you are still fierce. That is good. I would love to see you kick my ass with that burned leg."

Korra mumbles, "Don't think I won't try. And if I can't, Naga will" and then she stands up, slowly rising from the ground. Bolin immediately stands up too and tries to help but she shrugs him off.

"Do you not understand? I do not want you here." She says without her usual anger, without her usual conviction. It scares Bolin more then her threats.

"But Korra," he whispers, "I finally found you again. The war is over."

Korra looks straight into Bolin's green eyes, "I lost Bolin. The Avatar died."

"What are you talking about? You are right here. A little worse for wear, but I am not in top form either."

Korra sees the concern in Bolin's eyes; she sees the fresh scar across his nose from eye to eye; giving his usual baby face a hardened look. She sees his cropped hair with the loss of cowlicks, but most of all, under all the changes, she can still see the boy she met in the Probending gym in this new man.

"Why did you leave?" she asks, "Why did you leave when I needed you most?"

Bolin glances away, "I…you know why Korra. You didn't need me. You never did. Maybe we pretended you did, but I woke up from that illusion."

"Stupid reasoning, Bolin."

Now it is Bolin's turn to sigh and watch Naga playing in the waves so carefree. "Fine. Truthfully, I couldn't take the jealousy. I could not stand watching you with Mako. The two people I loved in love with each other. So I left. I left to find my own way; to help Republic City in my own way. You didn't need me Korra, you needed Mako. I had to learn to accept that fact. And I did."

"Jealousy," Korra seethed, "you left because of jealousy!" Then the emotion falls entirely out of her, "It doesn't matter. Mako and I are no longer together. We were both full of passion and when I ran out of that, there was nothing left."

"Nothing left? What is with you Korra! You stopped the war! You destroyed Amon! I saw you, I saw you deal the final blow, and I saw you take charge of the troops to prevent the retaliation murder of Equalists. I saw you reunite the city. You were amazing!"

Bolin grabs Korra's shoulders and looks deep in her eyes for the last part of his diatribe. "We should be celebrating! We should all be together, you in Mako's arms, and me at your side. No matter what happened in the past, no matter what happens in the future. You are the Avatar and I will be your faithful friend. Remember team Avatar?"

Korra looks down, avoiding Bolin's determined gaze, "Bolin, there can no longer be a team Avatar because I am not the Avatar."

"What…" Bolin tries to interrupt but Korra continues.

"I told Mako to leave and he left. Now of all times, I tell you to leave and you will not listen to me! Why is it that when I don't need you, you instead force yourself on me?" Korra yanks herself free of Bolin's grasp. "Watch, Bolin, watch."

And he watches, he watches as she stares at the sea, past Naga's playful but observing actions. He watches as she twirls slowly into a waterbender's dance, despite her injured leg. He watches as nothing happens, no water is called forth, no change appears in the rhythmic waves and no ice is formed beneath the sudsy sea foam. Korra can not bend.

Korra continues her dance, the motions so ingrained she has no will to stop until it is over. Bolin is speechless.

Naga skips out of the water with a fish in her mouth and proceeds to roll in the sand; coating both she and the fish in a fine layer of sand.

When Korra finishes, she collapses onto the beach, her forlorn expression still locked towards the ocean's horizon. Bolin continues to stand, in shock at her empty performance. He almost misses her next words.

"Amon saved me for last. His final move, before his loss, locked away the avatar spirit. I destroyed him but at the price of my bending."

Naga drops the fish and rolls over to Korra's side, placing her wet nose along Korra's damaged leg.

Bolin finally moves and falls to Korra's other side, "You know Tenzin has an idea about a cure for all the benders affected by Amon…"

"You don't think I tried, Bolin?" Korra again mutters, her quietness mirroring her hopelessness. "Everyday I try, I meditate and I pray. Nothing works and nothing will. I saved Republic City but I am no longer the Avatar. That was the price I had to pay, and gods it is selfish of me, but I wish I was not the one who had to pay it. What am I without my bending?"

Bolin tenderly touches Korra's shoulder.

That is all that was needed to release the flood gates; Korra hunches her back and sobs into her hands. Tears pour down her eyes from weeks of withholding, her chin wrinkles with her whimpering and soon her nose is red with rubbing.

Bolin repositions her so that she was sobbing into his shirt and he rubs her back and mutters soothingly. Her vulnerability strikes a cord deep within Bolin; a cord he thought he had buried months ago.

Naga also nuzzles her distressed friend until Bolin, Korra and Naga form a sandy ball of comfort. There they sit until the tide comes in.

The first wave laps at Bolin's heels. Korra is curled in his lap, no longer sobbing but not ready to relinquish the rock of his embrace so he lets the water rise until gentle waves build to his waist. Both he and Korra sit there soaking in the salty clean water, letting it leach out the sadness and pain.

"Korra," Bolin intimately whispers into her hair, "I never told you. I was there when you defeated Amon because I joined Beifong's forces. I learned metal bending and was a part of her front line troops. I stood there right along with you whether you knew it was me or not. I never left you Korra. I couldn't and I didn't want to."

Before Korra responds, a larger wave finally topples over them and Bolin scrambles to his feet, sputtering on water, and yanks a composed Korra up with him.

Korra wraps her arms around Bolin's waist and looks deep into his green eyes. She is soaked from head to toe, but even though her wet clothes are heavy, she feels light.

The waves froth around their knees and Naga wanders back into the deeper waters, enjoying a swim.

Bolin takes in Korra's wet hair and puffy eyes. _Beautiful_, is all he can think and mentally groans; he will never be able to get over this girl. "Dance with me" he mutters and she nods in reply.

They begin a classic Earth bending waltz, stable but strong, since Korra has to move slowly with her damaged leg.

As Bolin moves and Korra counters—a perfect duo. Soon, lumps of wet sand begin to spring through the water and fly in the directions of Bolin's and Korra's splashing movements. Sand twists within the waves, letting the water carve into its created forms until earth bending transforms it into a new figure. Korra and Bolin, the ocean and the sand, an infinite moment of time as all is lost to the movement and change.

Then the dance is done and both dancers take a deep breath of relief. "You can still earth bend." Bolin says.

Korra laughs, "yea, only when you are around."

"Well, I am never leaving so there is one element you can always bend!"

Korra smiles and wraps her arms around Bolin's neck, "Do me a favor would you and bend down for me."

Bolin looks at her, puzzled, "ok…" and he leans over into Korra's kiss.

She tightens her hold on him and he slips his arms around her waist. Her lips slowly caress his, thanking him for his worry, his care but, most of all, his love. The love that will help her become herself again. The love that will be there, Avatar or not, bender or not. The love that will bloom into life long support through the happy and the sad, through the momentous and the mundane. Felt in the moments between sleep and wake as Bolin's adjoining body warms the bed and banishes Korra's nightmares. Felt in the moments of Korra's pregnancy as Bolin feels the first kick of his future water bending son. Felt in the moments during a passionate kiss initiated spontaneously in a small moment of privacy. Felt in endless moments of the turns and twists of Bolin's and Korra's life together.


End file.
